LEGO is creating a new Juniors line designed to easier to build for younger kids. The "Juniors" name reminds of a period of time around the mid- to late-90's where LEGO sets were being "juniorized", a term coined by the AFOL community describing set designs being purposefully dumbed down with smaller piece counts and large, specialized pieces. It seems that LEGO is now embracing that concept and using the design approach to target a more laser-focused demographic as evidenced by the age range on the boxes indicating 4-7 years. I imagine the value of the sets having a price per piece ratio lying somewhere between System scale and Duplo scale.

So far only these two sets have been revealed. With Spider-Man headlining the Marvel side of the Super Heroes line, and, of course, Batman leading the way for DC, I would expect additional sets in the Juniors line to mimic their System scale counterparts and leverage the popularity of those characters more.

i don't get it. Isn't this the same thing Megablocks used to get accused for? Using large pieces to represent an entire section of a model? They don't do it anymore, but they still receive flak for it 10+ years later. Until Lego actually releases true double sided plates with studs in various sizes and goes the route of crappy weapons, i'll be ever expanding my Halo and now Call of Duty Megablocks. I get that it's targeted primarily for kids, but isn't Lego striving to be a creative toy? making a full car chassis that very obviously cannot be used for a spaceship or mecha kinda ruins the creative process.

I don't quite get these. The sets just below (the batman sets for older kids) start at age 5 and 6. Most kids i know could easily put them together at age 5 and would have been totally satisfied with those sets. Seems to be a case of spending a money to introduce a product line for a market that would have bought existing toys anyway. Though I will say the colors combinations might be a bit more appealing to the younger eye and the design has the advantage, for parents, of not having as many tiny pieces to step on

i can safely say that the size of the piece isn't so important when it comes to being stepped on, as how many sharp corners stick out. My own floor is often littered; you would think being an AFOL I'd be more careful. But no, everything from dalek pieces to 3x6 windscreens to 3x6 arches and boat hulls have allowed me to train my feet into ninja tools of stepping. These *are* really cute though.

I don't really get these, either. I've got a five-year-old who has no problem building regular LEGO sets, and has been building them since at least when he was 4. Are they just trying to tailor them to a shorter attention span? Most LEGO sets are pretty simple to build with clear, step-by-step instructions, especially now that they list the pieces for each step.

If these cost more per piece than "normal" sets, I can GUARANTEE that my son will ALWAYS choose the "normal" sets when comparing ones in the same price point.

The difficulty level in a build isn't always the most important thing when trying to taylor a construction toy for younger kids. The sturdinest of the model might be more important. My oldest who 6 can easely build more complicated models too (he's been doing so for a long time). The problem is that he is that he is not able to keep them together for a long period of time, and cannot rebuild them without thd instructions or Dad helping him to build something else.

At first glance, these look much sturdier than the regular models and easier to rebuild because of those big pieces. Plus, the fact that LEGO is using regular minifigs is a big plus in my book. Now, as a father, I can buy these for my son and know that they will fit perfectly with other sets my son already has.

And those minifigs look cool enough that I might get a few sets for me too!

Daz Hoo wrote:The difficulty level in a build isn't always the most important thing when trying to taylor a construction toy for younger kids. The sturdinest of the model might be more important. My oldest who 6 can easely build more complicated models too (he's been doing so for a long time). The problem is that he is that he is not able to keep them together for a long period of time, and cannot rebuild them without thd instructions or Dad helping him to build something else.

At first glance, these look much sturdier than the regular models and easier to rebuild because of those big pieces. Plus, the fact that LEGO is using regular minifigs is a big plus in my book. Now, as a father, I can buy these for my son and know that they will fit perfectly with other sets my son already has.

And those minifigs look cool enough that I might get a few sets for me too!

Having a 5 year old I can pretty much agree with this. My son can build the regular sets but most don't hold up too well well to play. He does however love the regular mini figs and these are never an issue, so I'm very glad they have choose to use the regular figures.

As for me buying these, all the sets look like they just have the same figures in them as the figures i already have, so that's not likely.

That being said, most of my son's superhero kids books feature characters that have not been made yet. (from DC) Cyborg, Hal Jordan, John Stewart. (from Marvel) Vulture, Sandman, Kraven the Hunter, Electro, the traditional Green Goblin. These are the figures my Kid recognizes. So hopefully Lego can get on with that, and if so, I would be tempted to get some sets for them and myself.

Daz Hoo wrote:The difficulty level in a build isn't always the most important thing when trying to taylor a construction toy for younger kids. The sturdinest of the model might be more important. My oldest who 6 can easely build more complicated models too (he's been doing so for a long time). The problem is that he is that he is not able to keep them together for a long period of time, and cannot rebuild them without thd instructions or Dad helping him to build something else.

At first glance, these look much sturdier than the regular models and easier to rebuild because of those big pieces. Plus, the fact that LEGO is using regular minifigs is a big plus in my book. Now, as a father, I can buy these for my son and know that they will fit perfectly with other sets my son already has.

And those minifigs look cool enough that I might get a few sets for me too!

Having a 5 year old I can pretty much agree with this. My son can build the regular sets but most don't hold up too well well to play. He does however love the regular mini figs and these are never an issue, so I'm very glad they have choose to use the regular figures.

As for me buying these, all the sets look like they just have the same figures in them as the figures i already have, so that's not likely.

That being said, most of my son's superhero kids books feature characters that have not been made yet. (from DC) Cyborg, Hal Jordan, John Stewart. (from Marvel) Vulture, Sandman, Kraven the Hunter, Electro, the traditional Green Goblin. These are the figures my Kid recognizes. So hopefully Lego can get on with that, and if so, I would be tempted to get some sets for them and myself.

I think you guys nailed it on the head, playability. My daughter is 2 and a half. She loves her duplo but she also loves playing with 'poppa's hobbit house' (bag end), the Friend pool, creator log cabin, jabba's palace. Obviously she's too young so her play is limited but she knows how to take minifigs and dolls apart and put them back together (with adorably mismatched results).

Those sets have the minifigures she likes, but I don't have to worry about all the tiny details and accessories getting lost or the set being unplayable after a couple minutes. I don't know about their longevity because kids will move on... good minifig selection, though. We'll see...

rnsrobot wrote:Obviously she's too young so her play is limited but she knows how to take minifigs and dolls apart and put them back together (with adorably mismatched results).

This is the first thing my kids liked to do with my Lego as well. My eldest son was actually not that much into Duplo, but after taking him to the Lego store he loved 'the build a minifig station' and laughed at all the silly things he could do mismatching them . (sorry for the mess Lego store employees! I tried to mostly clean it up)